Title

Authors

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2017

Abstract

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement’s many provisions that were beneficial to the pharmaceutical industry have caused a good deal of controversy. Specifically, critics allege that the TPP’s provisions requiring that member states expand patentable subject matter, adjust pharmaceutical patent terms, and link regulatory marketing approval to a drug's patent status would have raised drug prices and hindered access to medicines, particularly in developing countries. Closer examination of these provisions as well as the various ways in which member states can modify or ameliorate the effects of these provisions suggests that their potential effect on drug prices and access to health care is not nearly so clear, however.